Beldon Katleman
American businessman
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Beldon Katleman (July 14, 1914 – September 28, 1988) was an American businessman. Katleman bought into a partnership in El Rancho Vegas, a hotel casino in Las Vegas, Nevada and became president of the hotel.[2] Katleman was an investor in two other Las Vegas casinos, the Hotel Last Frontier and the Silver Slipper.
Beldon Katleman | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 14, 1914 Sioux City, Iowa, U.S.[1] |
| Died | September 28, 1988 (aged 74) |
| Resting place | Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Spouse | Leonore Cohn |
| Children | 1 |
Early life
Beldon Katleman was born to an affluent Jewish family[3] on July 14, 1914, in Sioux City, Iowa. The family moved to Southern California in the 1930s and he graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles.[1][4] His parents owned the Circle K national chain of parking lots and owned real estate in Los Angeles.[5] During World War II, Katleman served as a lieutenant in the motion picture division of the Signal Corps in the U.S. Army.[5]
Career
In 1949, he moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where his uncle Jake had an interest in the El Rancho Vegas, and he became a junior partner in the hotel. When his uncle died, Katleman bought out the other partners and became sole owner in 1953, becoming the youngest gaming entrepreneur at the time.[1] [2][6]
With Guy McAfee and Jake Kozloff, Katleman acquired the Hotel Last Frontier from Bill Moore for US$5.5 million in 1951.[7] He succeeded Kozloff as its manager in 1955.[4] He ceased to be a co-owner in 1957.[1]
In June 1960, El Rancho Vegas was destroyed by a fire and Katleman immedialtely left Las Vegas.[6][1] He planned to build a highrise on the site but the plans did not materialise and Howard Hughes bought the property in 1968.[1]
Katleman was an investor in the Silver Slipper, another casino in Las Vegas, alongside Jack Barenfeld, Norma Friedman, Irving Leff and T.W. Richardson.[8] After leasing it to Howard Hughes since 1968, they sued Hughes over a year's unpaid rents in 1974.[8]
In April 1988, the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee Senate reviewed the "murky" settlement of taxes Katleman may have owed to the state of California in the 1960s.[9]
Personal life
In January 1941, Katleman married Leonore Cohn, whom he had met at the Hillcrest Country Club, the Jewish golf club in Los Angeles; Leonore was the niece of Columbia Pictures founder Harry Cohn.[5] In 1942,[5] They had a daughter named Diane Katleman Deshong.[10] They resided in Beverly Hills, California.[10] The couple separated in 1944 and divorced soon after;[5] she married Lewis Rosenstiel in 1946.[10]
Death
Katleman died on September 28, 1988, in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California.[1] He was buried at the Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California.